I was on the train for 4 hours today to Erlangen. It was like driving to ECU only prettier things to look at :). I was in Möhrendorf this weekend to visit some friends and pick up my other suitcase that they were kind enough to keep for me.
This weekend was Möhrendorf's Kirchweih. The Kirchweihfest is a celebration of the beginning of fall (kind of a more dignified, small town Oktoberfest). Early on Saturday morning, all the men in the town club go out into the woods and find the biggest, tallest tree, cut it down, strip all the branches except for the top and set it up in the town square. The rest of the night everyone plays games, drinks bier, dances, listens to the band, eats Eis, eats Bratwurst, eats more, etc. The night was pretty interesting to watch. People were dancing on the benches and after a few more drinks they were dancing on the tables. Madlen and I just sat had a drink and people watched, it was a good time.
The next morning all the boys in the club are paired with a girl and they dance in a circle around the tree to traditional music. While they dance, they pass around a large tree branch with ribbons tied to it and when a timer rings, whoever has the branch gets to buy the rest of the club members' food and drinks for the night. This is considered an honor and everyone wants to win. The same process is repeated with the adults. The adults dress in the traditional Dirndels and Liederhosen, it's really neat to see all the different traditional clothing.
On the way back to Tübingen I totally sat in a reserved seat on the train and got fussed at by an old lady. Whoops! Embarrassing, but I've learned to take mistakes in stride and you have to accept that being foreign makes you look silly in a strange place and you WILL make mistakes and look like a crazy person.
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